Throwing that opening pitch may be the dream of many children Zion’s age, but he made it clear that the best part about his new hands is “just being able to wrap them around my mom”.

And Zion’s actions have only continued to exceed the expectations of the staff at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia.

Since his surgery, more than 200 patients with similar circumstances have inquired about the procedure, and his never-failing optimism has lead to new studies in early childhood development of child amputees who have received transplant appendages.

He even told Dr. Scott Levin, program director of his transplant, that he wanted to use his new hands to write the family of the donor a letter of gratitude.

He also requested that Dr. Leven refer any future to children that undergo this procedure to him, so that he can support them in their recoveries.

“Zion’s progress has been spectacular, highlighting what can be accomplished by the committed and coordinated collaborative effort amongst multi-disciplinary teams at CHOP, Penn Medicine, and Shriners Hospitals for Children,” said Scott Kozin, MD, chief of staff, Shriners Hospitals for Children—Philadelphia. “The dedication to Zion’s hand functionality and rehabilitation has expanded to the Kennedy Krieger Institute, as well the amazing community that has rallied behind Zion and his family. Their support has been instrumental to Zion’s success. Zion’s remarkable improvement, and his newly found ability to perform tasks previously unobtainable, is inspiring. Shriners Hospitals for Children is committed to continuing to advance this field and hopefully providing future children with the opportunity of this life-changing surgery.”

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